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How to turn Carbon Dioxide Into Rocks ?

A team of scientists has discovered a way on how to store carbon dioxide (CO2) into rocks, converting it into stable carbonate minerals. This new technology opens up possible solution for lessening carbon emissions, making the Paris Climate Agreement target more achievable. (Photo : Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

A team of scientists has discovered a way to store carbon dioxide (CO2) into rocks, converting it into stable carbonate minerals. This new technology opens up a possible solution for lessening carbon emissions, making the Paris Climate Agreement target more achievable.

According to the study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters, basalt rocks, which are formed from lava, could transform and lock carbon dioxide into solid form in just two years. Once carbon dioxide is injected into the basalt rock, it will not escape to the atmosphere. The team consisted of researchers from the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership, Shell Exploration & Production Company, Portland General Electric and Schlumberger Inc.

The researchers came up with the solution by conducting a project in the Columbia River Basalt formation, where they drilled a well to test the formation’s properties. In 2013, the team injected carbon dioxide into the formation, and then extracted samples two years later. The samples showed that the carbon dioxide has transformed into a carbonate mineral called ankerite.